pink tongue, puntius conconium, It is a very easy fish to keep. Sometimes the common name is spelled Rosey Barb. bearded conconium it is a junior synonym of the scientific name. It hails from Assam and Bengal on the Indian subcontinent. In the wild, it can grow to about 6 inches (16 cm) long, but in an aquarium it usually does not exceed 4 inches (10 cm).

water conditions

The Rosy Barb is very flexible in its requirements. A pH between 6.5 and 7.5 works well for this fish. Although it will survive slightly acidic water, it seems to prefer slightly alkaline water.

He is not overly bothered by the hardness of the water, but he does seem to like some hardness in the water.

It can withstand temperatures between 10 degrees C (50 degrees F) and 32 degrees C (90 degrees F). I wouldn’t recommend the extremes of its range, but I have heard of cases where it has been successfully kept as a pond fish in Adelaide, even in winter, suggesting that it can withstand temperatures even lower than 10 degrees C (50 degrees C). F). This is one of the fish that is happy in cold or tropical water aquariums, as long as the conditions are not too extreme.

food

This fish is extremely easy to feed. It will eat virtually all kinds of fish food. It is an omnivore and will eat soft boiled spinach as well as flake, pelleted, live and frozen foods. In a mixed tank, watch the fish to make sure the Rosy Barbs don’t get all the food. They eat a lot. Be sure not to contaminate the aquarium by putting in more food than the aquarium and its filter can handle.

A good live food for Rosy Barbs is Daphnia.

companions

The Rosy Barb is a schooling fish and at least 6 are preferred. In a school they are much less likely to be a problem to other fish. It is a larger fish than many of its common companions, as well as being extremely active; Naturally, it can sometimes cause problems.

Some suitable companions are: Paraguay Tetras, Pristella Tetras, Buenos Aires Tetras, Colombian Tetras, Rummy Nose Tetras, Harlequin Rasboras, Scissortail Rasboras, Lemon Tetras, Black Widow Tetras, Emperor Tetras, Head and Tail Light Tetras, Glass Bloodfin Tetras, Swordtails, Platies, Mollies, Zebra Danios, Glowlight Tetras, and White Cloud Mountain Minnows, as well as Corydoras catfish such as pepper catfish.

Some fish that I would definitely not recommend as companions for this fish are: Siamese Fighting Fish, Guppies, and Endlers Guppies.

Some small fish like Neon Tetras and Cardinal Tetras may be fine, while Rosy Barbs are small, but whatever type of fish you catch, you should be guided by the sizes of the individuals and the species.

varieties

There are several varieties of Rosy Barb, including Neon Rosy Barb, Long Fin Rosy Barb, Red Glass Rosy Barb, Blushing Rosy Barb, and Gold Neon Rosy Barb.

Breeding

The Rosy Barb is one of the fish that frequently lays eggs in a home aquarium without its owner noticing. Normally, the eggs are eaten long before they hatch, and those that do hatch are eaten when they are small babies and their owner doesn’t even see them.

Male Rosy Barbs have the reddish color that gives the species its common name, while females are more of a yellowish color.

Trios of two males and one female are often used by hobbyists trying to breed them. The fish must be well conditioned with rich food beforehand. This is particularly easy to do with this species because they are such good eaters. I find frozen bloodworms to be a good food.

The breeding tank must have many plants; both submerged and floating. Neutral pH is probably best. The trio are often placed in the breeding tank after dark and spawn the next or second morning. When they have spawned, the female should be noticeably thinner and the parents should be removed. Each female will lay hundreds of eggs.

The eggs hatch in 24-48 hours. Babies are quite small. At first they will eat infusoria or the finer fried foods, but they will grow quickly and will soon be able to eat larger foods such as filtered Daphnia.

Professional breeders sometimes just let their Rosy Barbs breed naturally in ponds.

Once, to confirm my observation that my rosy quills spawned frequently without any special stimuli, I put some rosy quills in a kind of breeding trap with a perforated bottom so that the ugly eggs would fall out and hatch in the aquarium. I have a number of babies this way.

make babies grow

Baby Rosy Barbs are vigorous fish. They eat well and can grow very fast, but you need to give them enough space and keep the water quality high. I suggest more partial water changes than are usually done.

They will be able to eat filtered Daphnia pretty quickly. They definitely benefit from Daphnia and other properly sized live foods.

feeder fish

The pink barb is one of many fish that are sometimes used as food fish. From the point of view of the people who sell them, they have some advantages for this. They are easy to breed, easy to farm, and the males sell better than the females, so if they can separate a lot of the males early on, they can get something for the young females.

Personally, I think feed fish are often used when not necessary, although I recognize that there are cases where there is little alternative. In our shop, we do not sell any fish designated as feeder fish, but I am well aware that some of the small Rosy Barbs we sell cheaply feed on other things.

plague fish

The Rosy Barb certainly has the potential to do great damage to fragile ecosystems. With any pet fish, you should never put yourself in a situation where it can escape into natural waterways. They should never be released or used as live bait. Fish pond plants should also not be placed in natural water courses. Twice in the creation of a new pond, minnows have appeared. My theory is that the fish eggs were on the plants put in the ponds.

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